The aim of our study was to examine how it affects people to get an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis. We have studied six self-biographies, written by people that have received an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis as adults. The purpose of the cur-rent study was to see if a person’s self-image is affected by getting an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis, how the interaction with other people is after receiving the diagnosis compared to before and how the people in our study viewed the di-agnostization in general with themselves as reference points. The theoretical framework consisted of Anthony Giddens identity theory with the leading idea that self-identity is... (More)

Title: The meaning of an ADHD-diagnosis

Supervisor: Tabitha Wright Nielsen

Assessor: Carina Tigervall

The aim of our study was to examine how it affects people to get an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis. We have studied six self-biographies, written by people that have received an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis as adults. The purpose of the cur-rent study was to see if a person’s self-image is affected by getting an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis, how the interaction with other people is after receiving the diagnosis compared to before and how the people in our study viewed the di-agnostization in general with themselves as reference points. The theoretical framework consisted of Anthony Giddens identity theory with the leading idea that self-identity is reflective, Erving Goffman’s theory of stigma and Howard S. Becker’s labeling theory. In our empirical work we found that people with undi-agnosed ADHD/DAMP have experienced a lot of difficulties in childhood, in general because they often felt different from others, which has resulted in low self-esteem. The experience of receiving a diagnosis in adulthood was mostly pos-itive, even though it’s an adjustment process. They felt that they got an explana-tion of why they have felt different and were therefore positive to diagnostization in general. (Less)

@misc{1973866,
abstract = {Title: The meaning of an ADHD-diagnosis
Supervisor: Tabitha Wright Nielsen
Assessor: Carina Tigervall
The aim of our study was to examine how it affects people to get an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis. We have studied six self-biographies, written by people that have received an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis as adults. The purpose of the cur-rent study was to see if a person’s self-image is affected by getting an ADHD/DAMP-diagnosis, how the interaction with other people is after receiving the diagnosis compared to before and how the people in our study viewed the di-agnostization in general with themselves as reference points. The theoretical framework consisted of Anthony Giddens identity theory with the leading idea that self-identity is reflective, Erving Goffman’s theory of stigma and Howard S. Becker’s labeling theory. In our empirical work we found that people with undi-agnosed ADHD/DAMP have experienced a lot of difficulties in childhood, in general because they often felt different from others, which has resulted in low self-esteem. The experience of receiving a diagnosis in adulthood was mostly pos-itive, even though it’s an adjustment process. They felt that they got an explana-tion of why they have felt different and were therefore positive to diagnostization in general.},
author = {Svensson, Moa and Warenius, Linnéa},
keyword = {ADHD,stigmatization,diagnostization,self-image,identity},
language = {swe},
note = {Student Paper},
title = {Betydelsen av en ADHD-diagnos - En studie av sex självbiografiska berättelser},
year = {2011},
}